May the Best Man Win by Mira Lyn Kelly Read Free Book Online Page B

Eddie’s girl. I know. But she’s not anymore, now, is she?” Then before Jase could jump in with more protests, his dad held up a hand. “I know. She’s under your skin. But I could list more than a few marriages that started just that way.”
    Choking out a cough, Jase shook his head. “If that’s the case, then I really oughta stay away from her.”
    There would be no winning this one. He could tell his dad how Emily disliked him even more than he disliked her. He could spell out all the reasons why. But he wasn’t up for the disappointment he’d see in his dad’s eyes if he got into too many details.
    When Jase looked up, the eyes that met his were frayed around the edges, faded from the years but still so eerily similar to his own that it was like looking in the mirror. “You know they don’t all turn out like your mom and me,” his dad said.
    â€œI know,” Jase answered evenly.
    Honestly. Because sure, he’d seen a lot of marriages where one member hadn’t climbed into a rusted-out Dodge pickup and taken off for California with the latest guy she’d been banging on the side.
    But the marriage he knew best was the one he’d felt the repercussions of through most of his life. The one that ended with his father, the biggest, strongest man he knew, broken down so bad that it had taken years and the support of half a dozen guys who loved him like brothers for him to recover. And the truth was that even two decades later, Big Joe Foster still wasn’t the man he’d been before that blow.
    Jase cleared his throat, heading back to safer ground. “So adding the baby to the mix… Sure, it moves things up for Romeo and Sally, but aside from the wedding plans themselves, it doesn’t really change anything.”
    His dad nodded, settling deeper into his chair and turning his attention to the game. “Good to hear.”

Chapter 6
    October
    Sally and Romeo decided on an intimate post-Christmas, pre–New Year’s wedding, and the now-truncated wedding party had assembled for a planning dinner at Wood, a Boystown neighborhood staple. The place was one of Jase’s favorites, guaranteed for a great meal with a slew of awards backing up the hype. It had warm, low lighting, keeping your meal an intimate affair, and a dining-room-length bar that ran opposite the wall of booths where they’d been seated.
    Romeo’s little brother Martin had scored the best man slot, and thanks to an overabundance of cousins and Romeo’s refusal to pick favorites, Jase, Brody, and Max had made the groomsman cut. Martin was a cool kid—twenty-one, a senior at Loyola with plans to start law school the next year, and a decent sense of humor—which meant nights like this one ought to be a whole hell of a lot easier to get through.
    Or that’s what Jase had thought until Emily breezed through the door, unwinding a burnt-caramel scarf from around her neck and then sliding one button after another free from her narrow-waisted wool overcoat. She looked polished, neat, and somehow sunny coming in from the late-autumn night.
    So she’d made the cut too.
    Jase took a deep swallow of his beer and set the glass down slightly harder than he should have. He’d had a feeling but, hell, a guy could hope.
    She spotted him first. And he had to give her credit. The flash of hostility in her eyes was nearly gone before he’d seen it, replaced with warm smiles for everyone else. She was good, even offering a chipper “Perfect” when Sally suggested she sit next to Jase to leave room for Peg.
    Those long legs slid in next to his, all but ensuring she’d end up in his space under the table. Great.
    â€œYou again,” she murmured, then tuning up a smile even he wouldn’t spot as a fraud, she asked, “Shitty day, I hope?”
    â€œWorse every minute,” he assured her, meeting her grin and raising her a